A Little Communication Can Go A Long Way

I was recently in the market for a new credit card, and I decided to inquire about the various options available with the branch manager of a leading leading Indian private sector bank in which I hold my checking and savings accounts. According to this customer-friendly person, I was eligible for a Titanium International zero-fee card, so I went ahead and applied for it.

A few days later, I received a brand new Platinum card. From my experience with American Express and Citi credit cards, I knew that Titanium was in a higher league as compared to Platinum. The Platinum card also attracted hefty annual fees. Moreover, I hadn’t received the add-on card that I’d applied for. All in all, I was quite ticked off at the whole affair, and my first instinct was to return the card. Since I had to visit the bank for some other work that day, I decided to talk to the branch manager before taking the next steps.

While the branch manager also initially felt that that Titanium was higher than Platinum, a quick call to an executive in the credit card department revealed that the reverse was true in the case of this bank. Not just that, the Platinum card offered higher rewards than Titanium and, contrary to what the flyer in the welcome pack said, it was free for lifetime. When I received a commitment that the add-on card would follow in the next few days, I no longer had any issues with the Platinum card and decided to keep it.

Here’s a classical case where a little bit of communication from the bank – something to the effect of  “based on our evaluation of your application, we’re happy to upgrade your card to Platinum” – would’ve created customer delight. However, the lackadaisical attitude of the bank caused me a lot of ire; and, had it not been for the timely http://premier-pharmacy.com intervention of the branch manager, the bank would’ve lost a customer.

Now, let me come to the next example, which revolves around the reason why I was in the market for a new credit card.

For several years, I’ve been using a credit card issued by a multinational bank. Their latest monthly statement (due in August) carried a charge for renewal fees, from which I concluded that my present card had expired. However, I hadn’t received any new card. I wrote to the bank expressing my annoyance and inquiring them how they could charge me renewal fees when I hadn’t even received the new card. They replied back with a boilerplate message saying my card was not free, so I was obliged to pay the renewal fees. I wrote back to them explaining that I didn’t mind paying the renewal fees as long as I got the new card. They still didn’t get it. I finally lost my patience with them and cancelled the card.

Only when I was about to destroy the old card did I notice that, while it had a July expiry date, it was July 2012, and not July 2010 as I’d originally assumed. Although this was an oversight on my part, the fact was that the bank hadn’t bothered to understand the reason for my annoyance. If only they’d told me that present card was good for another two years, they wouldn’t have lost a customer.

These two examples highlight how a little effort in communication can go a long way in fostering customer retention and customer delight. And, per contra, how a failure to do so can result in lost revenue and tarnished reputation.

PS: I’m aware that customized messages can disrupt standard workflows and play havoc with STP (straight-through processing) rates of bank systems. However, both my examples are cases of exceptions, which should surely trigger off some sort of specialized communication?